A Nightmare On Realm Street
by NoLogique
Summary: If Eric doesn't wake up screaming, he won't wake up at all.


NIGHTMARE ON REALM STREET

Eric should have been happy he was back at the old high school. He just wasn't sure why he was still in his Cavalier outfit, clutching his shield. He could hear the kids laughing and talking from the cafeteria, and in one hallway there were some getting things from the lockers, and chatting, but in the other hallway lights flickered and were burnt out, there were dead leaves and branches hanging around.

This place sure has seen better days, he thought.

What was he doing here? Was it even a schoolday? He had some homework to do, he remembered. Surely if he finished his homework he could justify heading out to the amusement park.

_"Eric-?_"

The voice came from the darker hallway. It was Diana's voice. What the heck was Diana doing down in that battered place? And couldn't the school have coughed up some money to keep this place intact? Maybe he _should_ be going to a private school.

He stepped over the dead leaves, heading in the direction of his home room. He wondered how long it'd been since he'd been in this place, and why his home room door was hanging off its hinges. It was so dark inside.

"_Eric, I'm scared-_"

He reached in and flicked on the lights. They came on brightly and he saw his home room. Jackie Forrester and Chet Smith were sitting down on the desks talking to each other. Eric was surprised they weren't smoking.

"Hey, Eric," Jackie said, "did you hear about Kristie Milks? She got _pregnant_."

"That so, guys?" Eric said, stepping in looking around. "You seen Diana around?"

"_Pregnant_," Chet said. "Can you believe that? It's all over the school."

"Elmvale," Eric said.

"What?"

"We were in Elmvale," Eric repeated. Yes, he was close. He could _almost_ remember. "It's this-- I dunno, city of elves, I guess, lots of guys wearing long pajamas and rockstar hair."

"Elmvale," Chet said. "Elmwale. Elmdale."

"Elves are fags," Jackie said. "You want a cigarette, Eric?"

There was a door at the back. Eric went to it, heard faint voices behind it, turned the doorknob, opened it. "Diana-?"

Stairs leading down into a darkness. There was a flickering glow here at the bottom of the stairs. It was extremely warm here. Dead leaves swirled upstairs, danced along his ears.

He looked back. Chet and Jackie were facing him, smoking cigarettes. "Elmfaaale..." Chet said slowly. "Elmdraaaale..."

"_Eric-_" Diana's voice wafted up from the bottom of the stairs.

Down the stairs, one step at a time; Eric reached the bottom and stared at a large boiler room. The shadows were very dark here, thicker and blacker than usual. Something that looked like Diana moved across a platform and vanished up some stairs.

"Diana!" Eric shouted, walking along the platform. "Diana, come back!"

His voice echoed back in her voice: _come back... come back..._

"Chee," Eric muttered. "Place gives me the _creeps_."

"The _creeps_?!" someone hissed.

Eric turned in time to see a hideous deformed face, and swiping claws. He threw himself back, crashed into the stairs, fell down each one, hit the bottom.

He scrambled to his feet, looked up--

No one.

Rattling. Banging noises. He looked down the platform. Framed by the flames in the boiler a figure regarded him almost appraisingly. He wore a hat and a weird striped sweater. Eric couldn't see his face very well. The figure came at him, ticking each second off with a claw banging off the rail.

Eric raised his shield and found just a battered old piece of a wood on his arm. "Oh god," he said. He yanked it off and hurled it at the thing coming at him.

"_Oh!_" the figure said in a horrible voice, catching the shield. "A _present._ How _cavalier_ of you!"

Laughter. The man was impossibly fast; Eric backed off, and the claws swiped, cutting his arm. Eric screamed--

And found himself with golden sunlight on his face. He tore at the sheets near his body, looking around the gorgeous, opulent chamber the elves had given the party. Sunlight came in through the balcony window, filtering through the ivy that seemed to grow everywhere. Beyond was the world-branches, part of the great tree that curled in and through Elmvale's forest.

Diana appeared in the doorway. "Eric, are you all right?"

"Nightmare-" Eric said. He pushed the sheets away from him, looked around his bed.

There were four long red slashes down his arm.


End file.
